Many languages use picture grams for the alphabet. It is generally not practical to implement a keyboard for these languages. Thus, systems have been developed for typing or data entry in such languages in which a user searches a database to retrieve each specific picture gram to be typed/entered. As an example, Chinese has multiple picture gram alphabets, including Mandarin and Cantonese. Typing or data entry systems have been developed that allow a user to enter a string of a few characters from a code-based alphabet (e.g., English alphabet). When the user enters a short character string in the code-based alphabet, (e.g., “mal”), the system presents one or multiple Chinese picture gram options that are mapped (in a database accessible to the system) to the short character string, the user may then select one of the picture gram options to insert into the relevant data field or document.
Thus, most computer users in China type out their Chinese in transliteration, using the standard English alphabet keys on a physical or virtual QWERTY keyboard. To generate a Chinese character (picture gram), the user types out its sound according to a spelling system called “Pinyin.” The computer automatically converts the Pinyin spelling to the correct Chinese characters on the screen, or presents multiple Chinese character options to the user, and the user selects the desired character.
FIGS. 1A and 1B show an example user interface 10 for a traditional keyboard-based method of entering Chinese characters via the Pinyin system. The user types a string of one or more English characters into an input string field 12 using an English language keyboard, and the Pinyin system displays a numbered list 14 of different Chinese characters mapped to the currently active English character string entered by the user. The user may then select a desired Chinese character from the numbered list 14 by typing the corresponding number (0-9), and the selected Chinese character is then displayed in a results field 16. The user may then enter another English language character string and select a desired Chinese character corresponding to that English language character string.
In the example shown in FIG. 1A, the user has already selected two Chinese characters as shown in the results field 16 (by entering English language character strings and selecting Chinese characters mapped to those character strings), and the user has then entered the two-character string “no” in the input string field 12 (e.g., using an English language keyboard), which brings up numerous different Chinese character objects (individual Chinese logograms or Chinese logogram combinations/strings) mapped to the string “no.” The user may then select from the different Chinese character objects by typing a corresponding number 0-9, or by typing “+” to bring up additional Chinese characters, to thereby add the selected Chinese character object to the Chinese character string displayed in the results field 16.
In the example shown in FIG. 1B, rather than selecting one of the Chinese character objects mapped to the string “no”, the user expands the input string to “nor”, which brings up a set of six Chinese character objects mapped to the string “nor,” from which the user may select (by typing a corresponding number 0-6), to thereby add the selected Chinese character object to the Chinese character string displayed in the results field 16.
However, the types of language conversion data entry systems discussed above have various limitations. For example, such systems are not effective in many embedded systems implemented with only a touchscreen, particularly systems with a small touchscreen display, as a virtual keyboard consumes a large amount of screen area, and the virtual keys may be too small for accurate selection by a user's finger.